Buy beersmith for extract brewing?

[peachwein]

I'm new to brewing, and have done a few kits, but I'm curious to attempt putting together recipes that aren't pre-bundled. However, i haven't made the jump to AG brewing yet, and dont plan to untill it warms up, and i have a bunch more batches under my belt. I was just curious if it is worth buying beersmith for extract brewing? I mean the cost is good, but i just wanted to get a few opinions on the matter.

 

[MonkeyWrench]

Absolutely, BeerSmith is invaluable in my opinion. Even if you are just doing all extract or extract and steeped grains, it helps you record your sessions, take notes, figure out bitterness, OG, color, etc that are all valuable for any type of brewing. As you run across recipes here that look/sound good, open up BeerSmith and input them so you have them for later. I had it before my first batch using their 21 day trial.

 

[peachwein]

Thanks for the advise. Really i guess i was expecting a yes answer, and wanted to hear it from someone who has used it.

 

[slowbie]

My advice is to do the trial for a while before you decide to buy. 21 days should help you figure out if it's worth your money. You'll probably decide to buy it, but better safe than sorry.

 

[mosquitocontrol]

I'm an all extract brewer. I previously tried trial version but that ran out like a year ago. I finally got around to installing the real version this weekend. It is going to help tremendously. I can finally try all the recipes on homebrewtalk with ease, take notes on my sessions, buy ingredients in bulk, plan upcoming brews in a single place (and know what ingredients I'll actually need). Just get it now because you will want soon enough.

 

[unclejimbay]

Check out hopville.com

It is not as extensive fro AG as beersmith, but it's free and works great for extract brewing!

 

[dirt55]

I LOVE Beersmith! I do mostly AG, but when I feel like it I sometimes do extract or partial mash and Beersmith has options for all of them. You will never out grow this program. I love the simple interface the ability to adjust an amazing amt of options. Definitely get the trial and you'll very likely purchase it before your trial is even up.

 

[JohnnyO]

Total agreement. Beersmith is an invaluable tool. It was very helpful with all of the batches that I've done. It wasn't until 4 batches in until I really started playing around with it to see all of the functionality. It's really an awesome tool to have in homebrewing.

 

[Laughing_Gnome_Invisible]

If you do the trial and THINK you will use it, then you will almost definitely use it. Even if you like to do calcs and stuff yourself when you are more experienced it is a one time fee, so it will always be in your tool box.

having said that, there are other tools out there that many others will also recommend.